It is well known that plantar ulcerations, commonly found in diabetic persons, develop in the feet over areas of high pressure. In these situations, the ulcerations can be associated with motor neuropathy, foot deformation, limited joint mobility, callus formation, even foot amputation. It is also known that high-pressure areas have been clinically proven as indicators of the likelihood of development of these plantar foot ulcers in neuropathic feet. In fact, it has been shown that among patients presenting with neuropathy, those with a reading of ≧6 kg/cm2 were twice as likely to develop a foot ulcer.
Reducing the pressure in the high-pressure areas of the foot of the affected person may prevent or reduce the effects of plantar ulcerations. Thus, early detection of high-pressure areas is essential in preventing the onset of plantar foot ulcerations, particularly in those patients considered at high risk.
Many methods have been developed in the past to measure plantar foot pressure, however, these methods are often costly and require special training to operate the necessary devices. Therefore, there exists a need to provide a low-cost, efficient and reliable means for measuring plantar foot pressure, particularly in high risk patients such as diabetics, so as to detect high-pressure areas in order to prevent plantar foot ulcerations.